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Anonymous

#313431 Wed, 10 Jan 07 01:24 PM

For a college admission essay, can I include this quote. And should I change the spelling or add something like [sic] or change the word with brackets?

The Quote: I ain't worried bout a damn thang, with unconditional love.

Thanks!

Anonymous

Spelling, Conditionals, Essays

Marius Hancu

#313442 Wed, 10 Jan 07 02:07 PM

I ain't worried bout a damn thang, with unconditional love.

All these are very informal, very probably not appropriate for such an essay, if used directly. Thus, use quotation marks:

He said, nonchalantly, "I ain't worried bout a damn thang, with unconditional love."

if you insist on using the quotation and that'll make it clear it's not your own sentence, but reported speech.

Marius Hancu

Joined on Wed, Apr 26 2006

Montreal, Canada

Veteran Member (11,673)

Conditionals, Quotation Marks, Essays

Lil' Ruby Rose

#313449 Wed, 10 Jan 07 02:13 PM

I think bout should be 'bout, as it's an abridged 'about'.

Like Marius, I'm concerned about the appropriateness of this for your essay. Are you sure this is appropriate? It is not only incredibly informal, it contains a mild swear word (damn), and a potentially offensive transcription of an African-American accent (thang). Please think again about using this.

Lil' Ruby Rose

Joined on Wed, Dec 20 2006

West of England

Regular Member (850)

Enlightenment is always preceded by confusion.

Accents, Essays, American Accents

nona the brit

#313454 Wed, 10 Jan 07 02:21 PM

lol

I just found out what it is a quote of.

OK, you could quote a Tupac song in your application essay if you really wanted to, as long as you referenced what you were quoting. And if you are quoting something, you quote it exactly, you don't tidy up irregular English.

But are you really sure that quoting a Tupac song is the best idea for your college entrance letter? How is that specific line about unconditional love in the slightest way relevant? If you want to quote that song I would have thought "Though things change, the future's still inside of me" would have been more appropriate.

nona the brit

Joined on Wed, Sep 22 2004

England

Veteran Member (11,450)

The name says it all.

Conditionals, Essays, Quoting